Abu Jinapor to co-chair FCLP with Senator John Kerry

The Government of the United Kingdom has appointed the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources and Member of Parliament for Damongo, Hon. Samuel A. Jinapor, as co-Chair of their flagship programme on climate change, the Forests and Climate Leaders’ Partnership (FCLP). He will co-Chair the programme with the United States’ Special Presidential Envoy for Climate and former Secretary of State, John Kerry. This was announced by the British High Commissioner to Ghana, H.E. Harriet Thompson, on Thursday, 13th October, 2022, when she paid working visit on the Minister to formally present an invitation letter for the Minister to co-Chair the programme. The Forests and Climate Leaders’ Partnership is a new political forum established by the UK Government to enable governments and partners work together to implement solutions that help reduce forest loss and land degradation while supporting sustainable development. It seeks to mobilise high-level political leadership on forests, land-use and climate to increase restoration and ensure accountability for the pledges that have been made. Breaking the news to the Minister, the British High Commissioner said the appointment of Mr. Jinapor follows his continued support for forest and other nature-based climate action since his appointment as Minster. She mentioned Ghana’s involvement in the Forest Agriculture and Climate Trade (FACT) Dialogue at COP 26 and said this is an opportunity for Ghana to maintain high level recognition on climate action and re-galvanise the international community to scale up climate action. Accepting the appointment, Mr. Jinapor thanked the UK Government and the High Commissioner for the honour and the confidence reposed in him, the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources and Ghana as a whole. He said the President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, is very passionate about climate change, which he demonstrated when he joined world leaders to sign the Glasgow Leaders’ Declaration on Forests and Land Use on the sidelines of COP26 in Glasgow, Scotland. The Minister said it is in the same spirit that the Ministry has been implementing several initiatives to contribute to nature-based climate action, including the Green Ghana Project, the FACT Dialogue, REDD+ programme, the Cocoa and Forest Initiative, the Forest Investment Programme and a host of other interventions. He pledged his commitment to the new initiative by working with John Kerry to achieve the objects of the new programme. It may be recalled that, on 1st June, this year, Hon. Jinapor attended the High-level Ministerial Meeting on Political Action for Climate, Forests and Land Use at Stockholm, where he had side meetings and engagements with John Kerry, the Rt. Hon. Alok Sharma MP, 26th President of the United Nations Climate Change Conference, and Lord Goldsmith, UK Minister for Asia, Energy, Climate and Environment. This appointment comes as a follow up of the 1st June Ministerial Meeting. He used the occasion to call for collective collaboration by all countries to provide a unique space for intergovernmental collaboration and coordinated action with partners and stakeholders to contribute towards this global fight against climate change.